Local wins first place with Smoked meat cupcake

Saturday

Scott Degeneffe, 38, of Boone has made a name for himself at the County and State fair cooking competitions by creating and entering unique smoked recipes—this year was no different.

For the 2019 Smoked meat division competition, Scott, who enters as an individual, but is better known for his affiliation with, ‘Baby got rack’ surprised the panel of judges with a smoked meat cupcake.

“Yeah, it really is kind of weird,” Degeneffe said. “but nothing I’ve entered in these types of competitions are considered ‘normal’ and I think that’s what sets us apart.”

This is the third year Scott has accepted the challenge of entering into the smoked meat competition—an event that is primarily dominated by ribs, chops and wings.

The first year he submitted a Mediterranean-style pizza that was a wild success among the judges, that he was able to walk away with a first place prize.

So wild that the following year he re-entered the same pizza recipe and won again.

“This year needed to be different, I didn’t want to be known as a kind of one-hit-wonder pizza guy,” Scott said. “So, I needed to start thinking outside of the box.”

“I don’t know about you, but I think the meatloaf cupcake is pretty outside of the box,” he said as he laughed.

The Winning Meatloaf Cupcake

While describing how the cupcake is made, Scott said, “The funny thing is that, one of the judges told me how they really don’t like meatloaf.”

But once the State Fair judge tried it, they told him that it didn’t really taste like meatloaf and that they actually kind of liked it.

The cupcake is comprised of a pork and beef base mixture from local grocery stores, cooked in an ordinary cupcake tin.

They are then removed from the tin, then with garlic mashed potato filled pastry bag in hand, Scott carefully ‘frosts’ each cupcake before sprinkling on candied bacon on top.

Once the ‘meat and potatos’ of the entre is completed, it is then placed in the center of a plate that is garnished with a secret barbecue sauce to compliment the dish.

What’s next for Baby Got Rack?

Well, at first, smoking foods was just a hobby that Scott had and liked to do with his buddies way before ever considering competition.

A small grill turned into a smoker, which grew into two smokers, then a trailer smoker that once he began competing completely transformed as he purchased a 16 foot trailer with smoker.

“It’s ever evolving,” said the Master Smoker. “We’re just going to keep rolling with it.”

Although he said the meatloaf cupcake is a limited time release and will no longer show it’s face at another competition, he has already thought of another recipe for 2020.

“It’s something that will remind you of the Flinstones,” he said. “Like a crowned prime rib, but that’s all I will say.”